The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a method for coping with stick-slip, a program product, and a printing system.
As a printing apparatus that performs printing with respect to a medium such as paper and a film, for example, an inkjet printer is known. The inkjet printer includes a print head that ejects ink onto a medium. The print head ejects ink while moving relatively with respect to the medium, such that printing with respect to the medium is performed.
The print head moves while being guided along a predetermined direction by a guide unit provided inside the printer. The print head is moved by a motor. The print head accelerates up to a predetermined speed by a control unit of the motor and then moves at the predetermined constant speed by PID control, for example, thereby moving up to a target position (refer to Japanese Patent Publication No. 2001-103778 A, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2001-158144 A, and Japanese Patent Publication No. 2001-169584 A).
In the inkjet printer, the following problems have occurred. For example, when an inkjet printer has not been used for a long period of time, a print head does not move smoothly along a guide unit but repeats an operation of moving and stopping. That is, the print head performs a stick-slip operation. The stick-slip operation occurs due to solidification of grease at a sliding part located between the print head and the guide unit, for example. Especially in a case in which the print head moves at a low speed, such stick-slip operation occurs.
When the stick-slip operation occurs, it takes time to cause the print head to move and then stop at a target position within a predetermined range.
Therefore, it is necessary to cope with such phenomenon.